Page 1396 - Week 05 - Wednesday, 6 May 2015
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MR CORBELL: Thank you, Madam Speaker. I will take that question as Minister for Health, with responsibility for the administration of the services provided by nurses in special schools. I thank Mr Doszpot for his question. I will need to take some further advice from my directorate and I will provide an answer to the member in due course.
MADAM SPEAKER: Before we proceed, I did not call Mr Corbell. Mr Corbell interrupted. This was a question about education. I have written down here “1997 education department policy”. The question was: “Is the policy still current?” I am not quite sure that the Minister for Health can answer the question about whether the policy is still current.
Mr Corbell: It relates to health care in schools, Madam Speaker, and I am responsible for the delivery of those services in those schools.
Mr Doszpot: Point of order, Madam Speaker. We are talking about the specific education policy that is under the education directorate.
MADAM SPEAKER: I understand the point. I took the notes as you were asking the question. If the government chooses to answer the question in another way, I cannot direct the government on how to answer the question. Do you have a supplementary, Mr Doszpot?
MR DOSZPOT: Yes, I do. Minister, what is the impact of the HAAS trial on the current policy, which has not been amended for 18 years?
MR CORBELL: I have been very clear about what we are endeavouring to do. The HAAS program is a contemporary program—contemporary with standards of care provided in other jurisdictions interstate and internationally. But we recognise the concerns that are raised by parents, by teachers and by the respective unions, and we also recognise the concerns raised by nurses about whether or not they are being best utilised in these care settings. We will work through these issues before seeking resolution of what the final policy setting should be, and that is exactly what we are doing right now. Indeed, we are right in the middle of a debate in this place, and once question time is concluded we will go back to that debate, where I will be able to elaborate further on those issues.
MADAM SPEAKER: A supplementary question, Mr Wall.
MR WALL: Minister, will any staff of special schools need to routinely administer injections as a result of a reduced presence of nurses?
MR CORBELL: Staff will only be delivering care consistent with their competency and training to do so. Each care arrangement for a child is different, and only those matters that can be dealt with by a registered health professional will be dealt with by that registered health professional. But there are other procedures and other types of care that can be delivered by other people who are not registered health professionals,
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